Forgotten
by Thoaria
Summary: Some stories are told, most are remembered. Hell, some are turned into books. But some stories are also forgotten. Sometimes that story is your own. Freya, a normal girl, has been sent headfirst into the world of Tales of the Abyss, and she doesn't know it herself. Here, the line is drawn between false memories, and forgotten ones. The question is: Can the true ones be recovered?
1. Chapter 1: Embark

**First of, I want to say that the title is a pretty vague term when applied to this. I've really been feeling the fandom lately, and felt that I should write something, hence the existence of this story. If I get anything wrong - info, facts, character portrayal, or anything related to the universe - please do point it out and I'll fix it ASAP.**

 **Um, Tales of the Abyss is owned by Namco** — **I do not own the characters except Freya, obviously. Please support the official release.**

* * *

Life is not easy. There's misfortune, there's deceit and there's hate. Some experience it and are crushed while others aren't. I am one who believes that calamity can be avoided, but that what happens is still out of my hands. That is why I distract myself with these games; they provide the ability to save people, and the feeling that you can. Reality limits this and it's oh so unfortunate. A particular game for this heroic stimulation and comedic adventure is _Tales of the Abyss_.

 _Baticul, the Capital of Light  
_ _Kingdom of Kimlasca-Lanvaldear  
_ _Remday, Rem-Decan, ND2018_

The text scrolled across the screen, right after the speech, that I believe, was given by Yulia in that cutscene. The voice tended to merge with my memory of Ion's, so I could never really tell. Anyway, this day in game is the equivalent to Monday, January 11th. What year? Perhaps the year it came out would be that equivalent, or the coming 2018. I liked to believe that it was right but it could very well be wrong.

Luke fon Fabre then appeared on the screen, donned in a white thing that was apparently called an outfit, muttering to himself about hearing things in his normal arrogant tone. While I knew that was because of his lack of contact with influential human beings, it pissed me off at this point. Still, it left room for tons of character development, or at least the ability to reveal suppressed traits.

I guided Luke outside and he had his conversation with Pere before heading off to explore the manor and steal items from the chests and/or cabinets. Knowing the story, I didn't waste time speaking with the servants; only the ones that tell you the Master Van is coming and to go to Luke's room. Upon entering the cutscene with the voice played out. Guy then came to the window and snapped Luke out of it, and they conversed until the maid knocked at the door. Now, I know I'm skipping a whole lot of dialogue by explaining the events this way. Honestly, we all know and love it already, so what's the point of reading it?

Anyway, that maid called again as the blonde gynophobe jumped from the window with a brief farewell. She then told Luke that he was to come to the drawing room as per his father's orders. He dismissed her curtly and I made him go out of the room and head towards his destination. He entered and the normal conversation ensued. Duke Fabre, Susanne and Van would greet Luke, they'd speak of Ion's capture, and how Van would be leaving the next day. Luke, of course, protested and got himself a sword lesson. Fast forward and the lesson begins, guiding me through the concepts that I already knew. I finished the tutorial and Tear's singing now resounded through the area, putting all near her to sleep.

In this moment, I wondered, what it would be like for me, an ordinary girl, to experience this adventure; not by playing it, or reading its story, but by being in it. Thinking about it, that's kind of selfish when you think of the reality of the situation. You know the story by being part of it, and you see it as fun as people suffer in it. I guess when put in that situation, you'd kind of want to forget it. Forget it and experience it as something new.

"That's something that will never happen, though," I muttered to myself as Tear and Luke created a hyperresonance.

That is when I lost vision. If I had known the cause, I would've done something, but at the time, I couldn't have figured it out. Nor would I have had the ability to help these people by knowing their future. Looking back, I can say that I sort of jinxed it. Why? Because when I regained my vision I had no recollection of what I had been doing prior to then. As well as what I had ever done on Earth.

* * *

I leaned forward, blinking the sleep from my eyes. It was another day. Another boring day of training in Malkuth. Honestly, I don't know why my father insisted that I do something as dull as this for living. It's not like the foretold war will break out soon. The Score's stupid, in my opinion. I don't understand why everyone is so dependent on it. The way I see it, it is a prediction of what _could_ happen, not what will. If someone abides by it, then, yeah, it will happen. If we oppose it, or choose some other path, then I am sure such a future could be avoided.

Ah, but that's just me. Philosophy is not a thing for the morning. That's for late at night when you get hit with random insomnia that is replaced with fatigue in the morning.

Why?

Because logic.

Sighing, I slid off the bed and looked around my very blue room. Blue: the color of the Malkuth military. The bed sat pushed up against the furthermost wall, next to the window with – you guessed it – blue sheets. Another bed was located closer to the door. I initially had a roommate, but she couldn't stand my "bland, dark and unsocial aura". I didn't get that, but I still didn't care, as that scored me my own personal room. The other bed was not wasted and put to use immediately, having my Malkuthian uniform spread across it along with a few weapons, sheathes, etc. The night table that was situated between had books stacked on it, as well as a few spilling out of the opened drawers and onto the oak floor. A desk and bookshelf were on the wall opposite of the night table with a mirror in between them. Similarly, the desk was cluttered with books and papers, while the bookshelf was filled to the brim with fantasy books, history books, rappig care books (those were necessary when you served under Emperor Peony), and the ever lovely military operations books. There were more, yes, but the topic of those was my secret.

I walked over to the other bed and pulled on the dark brown sweater and, over it, the beige tunic of my uniform. After that came the boring dark brown trousers. Over the trousers went two beige sleeves – one for each leg – with slanted ends, coming from my feet and going to just above my knees. The same type of sleeve went over each sleeve of my sweater, starting at my hands and ending just after my elbows. That wasn't the end of it, unfortunately. Hot days were a hell. After that came the long blue overcoat and brown laced boots. (Normally they were bland brown boots with blue sleeves over them, but I insisted on otherwise.)

The overcoat had a high collar that was supposed to be folded down, but I insisted that I keep mine up like a nerd trying to play ninja. On it were buttons that signified rank. Mine were bronze, saying that I was just above the typical soldier, but not saying that I had any particular status. I was glad to be rid of that old uniform; it was just stifling. Last came my belt, that didn't have enough holes in it for me so it slid down a bit, beige shoulder pads, and white gloves. Picking up the sword and sheathe, and fon tech guns that lied on the other bed, I slid them into my belt. The sword rested on my left hip while one of the two guns were on either.

Supposedly, my family had been using fon tech guns since the Dawn Age. If they were around then – that's what Father always said. Even so, I was absolute shit at them. And I was mediocre at best with a sword. To be honest, I think the only reason I'm not a normal ranking soldier is because of my father.

Having that done, I went to stand in front of the mirror, straightening my clothes. I took a round, silver clip emblazoned with my family's crest – a panther mid growl – and brought my curly brown hair up in a ponytail. When held that way, it reached the base of my neck and left a few rebellious strands to get into my brown eyes, obstructing my view.

Now that my uniform was on, I headed towards the dark oak door that was placed on the same wall as the beds. Opening it, I stepped out into one of the many halls of one of Grand Chokmah's many military bases. Many was not an overstatement, but while they were many in number, they were small in size. The only really big one was where Colonel Jade Curtiss' office and room was. That was located to the left of the palace, and about a five minute walk from the one I stayed at. That's actually where I was heading.

Apparently, we're taking the Tartarus – the Colonel's pride and joy – to escort the Fon Master to Baticul, Kimlasca's capital and the so called Capital of Light. And being so incredibly amazing at everything – note the sarcasm – I am being dragged along on this mission that will probably result in my death. Fon Master Ion tended to get in dangerous situations. Now that I think about it, I believe the Colonel is exacting his brutal revenge for my constant insubordination. Woops.

Once I reached the gardens, I looked toward the sun, expecting it to be nearly touching the horizon. By some divine bad luck, it was half way, which meant, and Yulia help me, that I was late. _Very_ late. No, they should still be in port.

 _Oh god, oh god, oh god. I have to hurry, or I'll be late. Late for my definite funeral, but still!_

I took off as fast as my legs could carry me. I ran past some of the city's guards who gave me incredulous looks, but I just ignored them, knowing that whatever the Colonel had in store would be much, much worse.

" _We leave at midday to escort the Fon Master to Baticul. I expect none of you to be there later than seven hundred hours. The Tartarus has an ID or passport scanning system that you all must go through. If any single one of you are not here, I will know exactly who you are. Now, do get a good night's rest, lest you be late."_ He'd said and then smiled that creepy Jade smile.

Needless to say, I feared for my life.

* * *

I stood panting in the entrance to the Tartarus. I had made it there just in time for the doors to shut. I had a feeling that he _knew_ I'd be late. Now, the Colonel and I have an interesting relationship. I get in trouble, he punishes me. I think it's a healthy one except for the fact that it mostly lands me rappig duty. Which, in itself, is the biggest punishment imaginable.

"Ah, if isn't Ms. Freya Degno di Fiducia?" A shiver ran up my spine as I heard the ever familiar sarcastic tone that lived on eternally in my nightmares. "So nice of you to finally join us." At that I heard a few snickers from the guards positioned at the door to the land dreadnought.

I slowly turned, looking up at the Colonel. The Colonel was dressed in a similar garb as mine. But instead of all that complicated shit, he had a simple blue overcoat with golden buttons and a trim of the same color as well as matching boots and glasses. His brown hair was parted to my left and reached his shoulders. If one were to give him a spirit animal, it would be a jaguar on the prowl, hiding and staring you down until the time is right to strike. Since I was standing at five foot nine and a half, he didn't tower over me as much as he did the others. Though that is true, it is still terrifying to see him look down at me with feigned amusement, red demonic eyes boring into my soul.

"Oh, uh, hey, Jeido…" I blinked, unsure of why I had said his name in that way, but no matter, I was screwed anyway. "Er, Colonel." I quickly added, still knowing that wouldn't help my case. "…Rappig duty when we return, I assume…?"

The "amused" grin widened ever so slightly. "Oh, much worse. If I recall, I said to be here at seven hundred hours. That would make you…five hours late. Rappigs will be the least of your worries, Ms. Fiducia."

If possible, my naturally pale skin became even paler as he pushed up his glasses, turned and walked down the hallway to the bridge. He paused for a minute, throwing a "You are to head to the room the Fon Master is staying in" over his shoulder and then headed up the stairs leading to the bridge. After he was out of earshot, the two guards' snickers turned into full blown laughter as they doubled over, amused by my predicament. I fixed the two of them with a glare, hoping that would shut them up, but it only made them laugh more. Deciding to just ignore it, I headed to the room that the Fon Master was in.

The room I was to stand guard in had a table in the center as well as two bunkbeds pushed up against the wall. When I entered, however, instead of standing at the door like I was supposed to, I took a chair from the table that was in the center and sat across from Fon Master Ion and his Fon Master Guardian. Call me curious, but I had this nagging feeling about these two. I wanted to know more about them immediately.

The Guardian was dressed in a pink garb of Daathic make with white leggings and purple shoes. Her dark brown - or raven, I wasn't sure - hair was up in pigtails that were tied with pink bows. On her hands were white, purple cuffed gloves. On her back was a puppet doll that gave off a very disturbing aura. Its purpose was unknown to me and I was sure that it was just some toy for her.

Her charge wore white and green robes that were also of Daathic make with gold sandals. In his hand was a gold staff that resembled a tuning fork. A similar trinket hung around his neck. Ion's dark green hair was pulled into two, uh, ponytails, I guess, that ran down either side of his face. On his head was a green and gold headband with two yellow pompoms on each end. Looking at him now, I found it rather hard to believe that he was male. The only thing that really proved that he was male was his obvious lack of breasts.

I tilted my head to the side and said, "So, you're Fon Master Ion?"

The Fon Master nodded, going on to say, "Yes. That would be me. You are one of Jade's subordinates?"

"More like personal punishment example setter…." I muttered, causing the Guardian to give me a questioning glance.

"Oh, so you're the problematic one he was muttering about before?" she asked.

"Muttering? What was he saying?"

"Something about birthing rappigs and cleaning his office."

My face met the table and I let out a long sigh. "I will have a lovely time in Grand Chokmah when we return…" Hey, at least I didn't have to go find missing rappigs like in that one side—Huh? Geez. I think I'm starting to lose it.

Ion let out an amused chuckle at this. That of which, I wasn't expecting from the leader of the Order of Lorelei and a seeker of peace. "I'm sure Jade can't be that cruel."

"Well, then you don't know Jeido very well." I sighed again, lifting my head from the table and resting it on my hand, elbow bent as I leaned over the table. "He _is_ called Jade the Necromancer after all. Naturally, he'd be harsh about it because apparently, as the name says, he'll work you to death and then bring you back and work you to death again. Rinse and repeat."

"Wow~" the Guardian sang. "I didn't know the Colonel was like that. I heard rumors, but I didn't believe them. He was so nice!" She frowned for a moment and then continued to speak. "I'm Anise, by the way, Ion's Fon Master Guardian! What's your name? At least give us that since you're being more social than your stiff friend over there." Anise gestured towards the other guard at the door.

"Oh, um, I'm Freya. It's a pleasure to meet you." I stood quickly and held my hand out in the universal handshake gesture. Anise accepted it with both of her gloved hands, shaking my arm up and down vigorously. Withdrawing my hand, I continued the initial topic. "And, don't let him fool you. He's quite the scary dude. There's a story among our division." At least, I think that's where this story came from. "We call it 'The Necromancer'. It goes like this:

"'As grey traces of dawn tinge the eastern sky, the three travelers, men of Willowdale, emerge from the forest shadow. Fording the River Dawn, they turn south, journeying into the dark and forbidding lands of the Necromancer. Even now, the intensity of his dread power can be felt, weakening the body and saddening the heart. Ultimately they will become empty, mindless spectres...stripped of will and soul, only their thirst for freedom gives them hunger for vengeance...'"

I paused to explain it to the two. "I believe a hymn accompanied that part, but I don't remember it. And if I did, I wouldn't be able to sing it."

Shrugging, I continued the story. "'Shreds of black cloud loom in overcast skies. The Necromancer keeps watch with his magic prism eyes. He views all his lands and is already aware of the three helpless invaders trapped in his lair...'" I stopped again, laughing a bit. The two looked at me oddly, so I elaborated.

"We're sort of like those three - trapped in his lair, the Tartarus, he knows we're here, and we're completely helpless. Jade's probably going to kill us." They both looked like they were about to laugh at that, but immediately stopped, any amusement they had being replaced with sheer terror. A shiver ran up my spine explaining why exactly they looked so scared. "He's right behind me, isn't he?" They both nodded as Jade spoke up, proving my suspicions.

"Quite the tale. It's a real shame that I had never heard it before."

I jumped up and turned to face the Colonel. "WHEN DID YOU EVEN—I DIDN'T HEAR—WHAT THE FUCK, JADE?!" I hadn't heard the door open, or his footsteps.

Jade ignored that outburst and turned to the other guard in the room. "Have you heard that story before? I don't recall such a story with a hymn to accompany it."

The guard answered without fear, as he must have been certain that Jade was right and that it did not exist. "No, sir. I've never heard it in my life."

"Ah." Jade turned to face me again. "Tell me, then, where did you acquire such a tale?"

"Um...I-I have no idea, Ja–Colonel Curtiss, sir!" I replied raising my hand in a fearful salute. Everything about this guy gave me the creeps. But what disturbed me more was the the fact that I knew that story while no one else did. And then there was his reaction. Why he was getting so worked up over it? "I'm sorry to have offended you. It was made up and does not pertain to any fact, I swear."

"You don't know of its origin? How troublesome. Perhaps kitchen cleaning duty will jog your memory."

"What?! But that's—"

Jade interrupted me, addressing Ion. "We've heard that the Dark Wings, renown criminals and thieves, are in the area. Would it be all right if we pursue them, Ion? The Malkuth military has been after them for a while now, and...Peace talks are important, but they just so happen to be on the way."

Ion immediately nodded. "They're terrorizing both Kimlasca and Malkuth. I think their capture would help our chances with this declaration of peace."

"But Ion…" Anise gained the attention of everyone in the room. "We need to get there as soon as possible! This will take too much time! Even though it's on the way, what if we have to fight them and you get hurt! What then?"

The Fon Master shook his head, dismissing Anise's worry. "This letter to King Ingobert is important, but it can be held off if criminals that are hurting the peace are captured."

Anise looked like she was about to protest, but I cut her off from where I now stood in what was supposed to be my position in that room.

"Anisu," The girl tilted her head at the nickname. "Jeido's going to go through with this whether you and Ion like it or not." Anise pouted at that, crossing her arms. "By asking he was simply being nice." I casually leaned back against the wall, throwing Jade an uneasy, hopeful smile that a child trying to sneak out of trouble would.

The Colonel pushed up his glasses, the lenses flashing in the well lit room. "Why thank you for that much needed explanation~," he said. "Though, you spoke out of line. Now that I think about it...the weapon's in storage need to be cleaned and sorted. Why don't you get down to doing that?"

"BUUUUT JAAAAAAAAAAAAADE—WHY DO YOU HATE ME?!"

He smirked. "I have no idea of that of which you speak."

And then he was gone again. And I had to clean the weapons. Frick.

* * *

The weapon's storage was a room located on the lowest floor of the Tartarus, near the engine room. The room was maybe four times the size of the room that Ion and Anise had been in with wooden crates littering the floor and a couple of shelves on the walls that held chests of...ammunition, I guess? From my knowledge, some of these crates held gunpowder. Why Jade let me clean up a room with this in it, I have no idea. He obviously wanted me to accidentally blow up the Tartarus, and knowing me, it'd happen; gunpowder would somehow get into the engine room, or pipes, if we had those, and somehow ignite by some random fucktard (probably me) who decides to use the Fifth Fonon indoors on a fricken land dreadnought. I am not over exaggerating there. I'm a complete and utter klutz sometimes. I blame my height and foot size.

So, anyway, a pile of swords was on either side of me; the one on the left for the polished ones and the one on the right for the ones to be polished. We didn't have any whetstones to sharpen or proper sword polishing things around (sandpaper, abrasive paper, metal polishing compound, steel wool, etc), so I had to make do with a rag I found lying around. I'm sure this is the stupidest thing I could be using to polish considering I could cut the fabric and my own hand by some divine miracle any minute. I sure feel bad for whoever's rag this initially was. Shrug. Oh well.

The pile, admittedly, of polished swords was much smaller in size than I liked. I just wish I could get this done faster so I could plot my revenge. Well, fantasize about plotting my revenge. No one crossed Jade and survived. No one _even_ _thought_ of crossing Jade and survived. Yulia help anyone who does because I don't imagine they'll have escaped him for long.

I let out a long drawn out sigh as Jade's voice buzzed over the PA system.

" _All gunmen report to your stations. The Dark Wings have been spotted. Prepare to open fire."_

Wait. That meant the Tartarus would also reach ramming speed—

" _Switch to ramming speed five."_

Yulia fucking dammit.

And I was in the weapon's storage. With sharp pointy objects lying on the floor next to me. We were about to reach about seventy-five miles-per-hour. Do you understand what that momentum can do to these _**sharp**_ , _**pointy**_ objects? Fuck this. Freya's out. Peace.

I promptly stood, threw the swords in a random box that was at the back wall and turned to leave. What I didn't account for was one of the swords hitting another at just the right angle, to create just the right amount of friction, to spark. And guess what was in that crate.

Gunpowder.

I probably would've gotten away with it too, as it looked normal. Well, normal aside from the fact that the remains of the crate littered the ground, embers clinging to the pieces, and there was a giant fucking hole in the wall. Of Colonel Jade Curtiss's, Jade the Necromancer's, land dreadnought, the Tartarus.

I. Am. So. Fucking. Dead.

* * *

The good thing is: I escaped the weapon's storage, ran up the steps and entered Ion's and Anise's room. The bad thing is: Our every day, happy-go-lucky, super fantastical Colonel was there as well. Why the hell wasn't he in the bridge like I had hoped? I swear, I have the worst luck sometimes. The second I made a sound, I knew I'd be acknowledged, so I silently stood opposite the other guard at the door, letting my resting bitchface do its job. Having a helmet probably would've helped in this situation, but I hated them. They cut down on my sight when shooting and slashing. Even though I was bad at that, I was pretty agile (yes, tall klutzes can be agile) and could dodge, so I never saw helmets as necessities. Boy, do I wish I had just sucked it up and dealt with it right now.

I was waiting for my normal chameleon effect to take place. I normally went unnoticed if I kept up my resting bitchface and remained silent. But I knew...I _knew_ he _knew_ I was there. I was just hanging onto the possibility, the _**hope**_ that he wouldn't question me. So, as I stood there, having nothing else to do but panic silently, I listened to their conversation.

"Jade, after the Dark Wings are taken care of, would it be possible to stop at Engeve?" Ion asked, tilting his head in thought as he spoke. "I heard that they were having trouble with their crops lately. They haven't been getting onto the trade routes."

The Necromancer sighed, bringing a hand to his temples in distress. "Ion, that is in the exact opposite direction of where we are chasing the Dark Wings, and where they are headed. That letter must reach Baticul; it is important, as you said before."

Before? Just how much of that conversation did Jade hear before?

"But…"

Jade shook his head, pushing up his glasses. "We can't attend to that now. Though, we may be able to on the way back to the empire."

Ion brought his hands together happily, giving Jade an open mouthed smiled and making some sort of gasping noise. "Thanks, Jade! You're the best!"

Idiot. You'll make his ego inflate even more than it already has.

"Wait, but what about the God-Generals…" Anise piped up, giving way to the next topic in the conversation. "We sort of did sneak out...So, Mohs will probably send them to retrieve you, or something."

I involuntarily snorted at that. Mohs wouldn't—Huh? How did I—Well, fuck, I've made sound. I'll be noticed. Shit. Shit. Fuck. Fuckity fuck fuck. That means someone will a—

"Well…" The Colonel stood, clasped his hands behind his back and headed for the door. "I'll be heading back to the bridge now. As much as I would like to let the young ones handle things, they lack the experience that comes with age."

 _He's reaching for the handle, I'm home free! Come on, Jade! Go! Go!_

"That was fast." He postponed all movement. "You finished sorting?"

I stood tall, formed my hands into a fist salute, and kept a straight face. "Yes, sir. All sorted."

"Polished?"

"To perfection."

"So there will be no need for me to check on them?"

"No, sir."

"I see." Jade reached for the handle once more, opening the door and stepping out into the hall.

As soon as I was sure he was a good ways away, I let go of the breath I hadn't known I was holding and slid down the wall. "Phew…"

The Fon Master Guardian laughed, bringing me back to reality. "You should've seen yourself!" Anise said. "You became all stiff like this—" She mimicked me, sucking her gut in and puffing out her chest. The only difference was that she placed her hands at her hips, rather than bringing one to her chest and leaving another at her back in a fist salute like I had. "—and talked like this." Anise pronounced "like this" with a bastardized soldier tone. "Still, it looked like you were shaking in your boots!"

I brought my knees to my chest and propped my chin onto my knee as I responded. "I don't want any more work. I'm sure your superiors aren't quite as scary as Jade."

"My only real superior is Ion…" she muttered. "Because I'm Ionian Sergeant, Anise Tatlin, Oracle Knights, Fon Master Guard. ...Uh, that's not exactly articulate, but...It's what I am."

"That's too long…Just say Ionian Sergeant, Anise Tatlin."

"But then how'd they know I'm with the Oracle Knights?"

" _Ionian_ Sergeant."

"Oh...Right."

Sigh. This was going to be a long ride.

* * *

 **"The Necromancer" is by Rush, I do not own it.**

 **Well, there it is! Um, if anyone has suggestions regarding ships, feel free to leave them in the review section. I have a few in mind, but I'll only share one. LukeXTear. So no need to vote for otherwise! I don't know how regular updates will be as I am busy with other things. Well, yeah, see you in the next, I guess.**


	2. Chapter 2: Bending the Rules

**Ah, this is really late. Fml. That's all I can really say. I've been on Tumblr doing things like RPing for the time I could've been doing this. Oddly enough, it only took two days to write. Neat. Anyway, I figured I'd answer questions I got.**

 **Fawn:** Ah, thank you! I hoped to, er, make it promising. I have a few ideas for pairings, but feel free to suggest any you want to see. I might've said this in the last chapter's author's note, but Luke X Tear is absolute. I'm open to suggestions for the OC, however. And, yes, of course. I thought I'd been clear enough, but looking back, damn, I could've handled that better. Thank you for bringing that to my attention!~

 **Elvithradia:** Thank you! I'm sure it'll be rather interesting to see what her fate is, mhm! I have a few ideas written up for that. There're several directions that it can go in. I've wanted to do certain things, but then I realized it's been done before, so I steered it in another direction. Again, there's a shit ton of ideas flitting about in my mind. The challenge is getting them documented.

 **Thank you for your feedback! Without any further ado, let's continue!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Tales of the Abyss. Please support the official release!**

 **Also, my grammar isn't perfect. And I was half asleep when reading through this. If I've made any errors, don't be shy when pointing them out! I'll be sure to fix them immediately!**

* * *

 **~Chapter Two~**

I leaned to the right of one of the Tartarus' many portholes, hoping to see a bit of the action as sitting in a room with an overly - impossibly so - cheerful girl and the incredibly polite Fon Master had gotten both strenuous and boring. Sigh. I mean, it's nice to have their company, but Ion's constant rambling about peace, Daathic arts and other religious mumbo jumbo had started to get on my nerves. Besides, despite how I thought I might die, or get hurt, I also wanted to see the struggle in person. And, well, looking at the Dark Wing's carriage zip by as fonic artillery fired at them was exciting, to say the least, and probably the most action I will ever get to see.

Another shot was fired, and they barely dodged the incoming blast, nearly sliding into...another passing carriage? Maybe it was another one of the Dark Wings'. The driver of that one spun the carriage out to the side, if that was possible, almost tipping completely over. Curious as to what was going on in the bridge, because firing ceased for a moment, I quickly made my way there. Apparently, the colonel was trying to not hit the other carriage. So that must've meant they were just civilians getting caught up in a military affair. Jade placed a hand on the fonstone that was the Tartarus' system mainframe, presumably to activate the outer PA system.

" _You, there! Move your coach before you get caught in the crossfire!"_

As the colonel said that, I watched a red haired boy poke his head out of the window of the carriage from behind one of the soldiers that sat in the cockpits. The driver, upon hearing that, quickly moved his carriage far out of our berth, pulling the boy back in with the force of the turn. Once they were out of the way, the soldier I stood behind spoke up.

"Commander! Enemy has crossed Rotelro Bridge! They're putting gunpowder on the bridge!"

Jade calmly surveyed the situation from where he stood, naming the most possible outcome. "My, my. They intend to drop the bridge, do they?"

Another soldier immediately spoke after he said that. "Fon slot activation detected!"

Right after him, the one to his right spoke. "The enemy set off fonic artes using the Fifth Fonon!" Let's be glad they weren't aimed at us. I have no idea where _our_ gunpowder could have gone. "The bridge is going to explode!"

The Necromancer acknowledged this and quickly gave the sufficient order. "Tartarus, full stop. Activate fonic barrier."

"Yes, sir! Tartarus, full stop!"

With that, the vehicle screeched to a stop, rather abruptly, and would've launched me into the soldier if I hadn't used the back of their seat to stabilize myself.

"Fonic barrier activated!"

The sound of fonons being released was then heard as they used them on the fonstones to form the Tartarus' barrier. After that, the bridge exploded, chunks of stone flying at the Tartarus. Since the barrier was up, they bounced off harmlessly and fell to the ground.

While it stopped any damage to the vehicle, it didn't stop it from creaking and shaking. The force caused a bookcase, filled with files as opposed to books, on the other end of the room to topple over, dispensing its contents onto the floor. Files were a bit out of place here, what with the fontech computers. I never really took Jade as the old fashioned type. Even so, I immediately began to clean up the mess. Thankfully, the files were bound together by twine, they were stored in something more akin to an accordion folder than a manilla folder. It was only a matter of placing each one in alphabetical order. Which would be rather annoying, considering that there were twenty A's, each accompanied by a second letter.

 _Hmm, no A-V's? Wait, what's "V"? That's not a letter in the fonic alphabet. But I could've sworn…._

I simply sighed and continued on until my hand skimmed over a plain old manilla folder with my name on it. That was odd...It wasn't with any other group. Perhaps that was just a mistake. Maybe it had come out of the F-I folder. It's plausible, but...I doubt that's the case, to be honest. I tried my best to return it to the shelf in the spot I assumed it would go - since it did not appear to belong in the F-I folder and said folder was still bound - hoping it would be adequate. After that, I busied myself with the rest.

Until my eyes made contact with it again. Before I could raise protest against that inner desire, I had already grabbed hold of the folder and was about to yank it open when Jade's voice caught my attention.

"We will make for Engeve. All units are to stay on board. Freya-" The Necromancer crossed the room, bending and taking the file from my hands, continuing only after holding it behind his back in between clasped hands. "-escort the Fon Master and his Guardian to Engeve."

My only response was a reluctant "Yes sir…"

* * *

A frown formed on the Necromancer's face as the girl made her way out. Jade took the folder from behind his back, flipping it open. How curious, it was, that Freya had gotten her hands on this exact folder. It couldn't be a coincidence. Even if she had opened the folder, however, Jade was almost certain that she did not know Ancient Ispanian. It was a dead language, and that's why all important documents were written in it. Computers may have been a better storage facility, but they could be hacked - writing could not. And so the colonel had taken to more primitive methods.

The contents of this folder were strictly for his eyes only as the prospect of a girl such as this just appearing out of nowhere and being backed by a family that had been as ancient as Yulia herself was more than odd. The heir to the family had no such luck with children, and refused to ask another to donate, so that reasoning was out. Adoption made complete sense, though there were these strange lapses Freya had. Often it was a reference to some unknown thing, or a moment where she's caught with a far off look. It could be taken as daydreaming, or pure craziness. But wasn't everyone a bit crazy? There was something off, and call it inane curiosity, but this was something that Jade needed to get to the bottom of. There was nothing that said he was prevented from knowing anything he wished, and he would abuse that power.

As for what the files said, it was rather simple, despite the long winded language it was written in. First, of course, came basic identification with notes scribbled into the margin.

 **Freya Degno di Fiducia - Rank 7 Infantryman, Third Division, Malkuth Imperial Forces**

 **Nationality:** Malkuthian (?)

 **Age:** 19

 **Height:** 5'10" - _Odd for a female, especially one born into this family._

 **Weight:** 125 lbs - _Not heavyset, incredibly fragile, though it is not noticeable at a glance. Appears to injure herself easily, especially her ankles. Walks with a limp after even a simple jog in a training session, favors left foot._

 **Hair Color:** Brown - _Not exactly reminiscent of the noble family she is supposedly affiliated with, and their genetics, at a glance, do not appear to be able to create a child much like her. She bears no similarities, she must be adopted. They primarily have blonde or jet black hair._

 **Eye Color:** Brown - _Again, not something expected, considering the family line often possesses blue eyes._

 **Skin Tone:** Incredibly pale _\- however, she tans easily in the summer months. She must have large quantities of melanin. Not exactly common in northern Malkuth._

The next section delved into personal skills and information from her school records which were recorded by her previous superiors along with his own notes yet again. This was where things got even more interesting, if they hadn't been already.

 **Balance:** Incredibly poor _\- Which is no surprise, considering the amount of times she trips per day._

 **Stamina:** Decent _\- Cannot run for extremely long periods of time due to apparently weak ankles._

 **Speed:** Above average _\- As to be expected...She seems like the type to flee._

 **Strength:** Decent _\- Fragility often causes these things, she appears to lack muscle mass as well._

 **Intellect:** Excellent _\- Apparently, as far as books and tests are concerned. I am not too certain about the logic behind that. Doesn't seem like one that is able to act quickly, and is more reckless than expected. Perhaps this isn't what it seems. Numbers do not lie…_

 **Notable characteristics:** _Appears to be_ very _opinionated and has her own sense of justice. This warrants close watch, as it may be problematic._

 **List of Classes/Electives from Military Academy:**

Advanced Fon Science: 98% _\- Odd, she doesn't appear to be the type to meddle with fontech._

Advanced English: 100% _\- Well, she does look lost without a book, or notebook and writing utensil._

Algebra II: 85% _\- Not one for numbers, it seems. It's believable._

Advanced Living Environment: 95% _\- Monster study...An odd field to pursue._

Government & Economics: 75% _\- Diplomacy without snark or fists does not seem to work well with her. Or numbers…_

Music Theory: 100% _\- She seems more likely to throw an instrument at a wall than write music for it, that much is for certain._

Weapons & Martial Arts: 100% _\- This has to be the most BS of them all. Even if the others_ are _real, this is too much to swallow._

 **Extracurricular Activities from Military Academy:**

Volleyball

Drum Corps

Honor Society

 _All surprising things. She seems more lazy than anything. This merits further study. I do not have much faith in these numbers, they seem unreal to me._

After a quick peruse and the addition of more notes to the document, Jade closed the file and returned it to its place on its shelf. My, this would be an interesting investigation.

* * *

It didn't take long for me to reach Engeve. Or lose the Fon Master, apparently.

"IIIIIIOOOOOOOOOOOOOON!" Anise yelled from beside me, worry evident on her features. She cared about that kid a lot, I was certain. And so I proposed an idea.

"Would you like to split up? I'll check out the market area, if you'd like," I offered, annoyed that the Fon Master just _had_ to go off somewhere. What a drag…

Anise, however, brightened up at those words. "All right!" she agreed, running off in the direction of the inn. The markets were, thankfully, only two feet away from where I was standing. See how that played out? Aren't I smart when I want to be lazy?

Honestly, I wish I hadn't bothered with the market. All I wanted to do was facepalm at the stupidity. In fact, I did. As I watched from a safe distance away at another stall so the stupidity didn't infect me as well.

"Why do I have to pay?" the red haired boy from the carriage asked ignorantly.

A short, brown haired woman that was apparently his babysitter let out a distressed sigh. "You can't take a store's goods without paying!"

"But the manor pays for everything all at once!" Now that grabbed my attention. Manor? This brat was nobility? Well, his attitude _does_ make sense now. "...Oh wait, this is Malkuth," he continued after a beat. That last sentence made me even more interested. He wasn't Malkuthian, but he was a noble. A foreign noble. It doesn't take a lot for me to come to the conclusion that he _should not_ be here.

"Malkuth _or_ Kimlasca, the normal way to shop at a store is to pay money for what you buy _when_ you buy it."

 _Kimlasca…!_

"I haven't got any money on me!" You poor baby…

"You have the money the monsters dropped," the woman replied, hands moving to rest firmly on her hips.

"Oh yeah….! I forgot about that...It's not exactly gold, so…" Hmph. Rich brat. Sorry poor people currency doesn't please you. Yulia, cry me a damn river.

"Hey! If you're not going to pay, I'm going to have you arrested!" the stall owner shouted at the noble as the man at the stall I stood at made eye contact with me. Hm, an arrest? Sounds fun. I brought a hand to the fontech gun on my right, prepared to whip it out if things escalated further.

And then-

Is she explaining how shopping works?! Was this kid born under a rock?!

The duo paid and then left. Damn, no chance to arrest them. Grrr. The woman seems nice, but this kid is annoying as fuck. I should follow them, really. For shits and giggles.

And so I trailed them, staying a far enough distance away to appear inconspicuous. Eventually, they ended up in front of the inn, and behind a bunch of townspeople also trying to enter. They were complaining about food being stolen from the storehouse. Upon this kid commenting about how unimportant food was, they jumped to the conclusion that he was the culprit, and immediately tried to detain him. Yulia help me, this is too painful to watch.

"Halt!" I said before thinking things through. "Drop the boy."

"On whose authority?" a man, who was apparently named Kelly, inquired, shooting me a glare. Oooo, I'd enjoy this sooooo much.

"Colonel Jade Curtiss, Third Division, Malkuth Imperial Forces. Now drop the boy, or I will be forced to act." In my moment of badassery, I regret nothing. Later? I am not entirely certain.

"Isn't Jade a ma-?"

"Isn't Kelly a woman's name? I think that settles the matter. Now release the boy." They all let go of the redhead at once, causing him to land hard on the ground, and with a groan, he shot me a dirty look. The woman looked more or less disappointed. I guess I would too if an asshole like that wasn't sent to jail. "Off with you all!" Just like that, the villagers were gone.

"...You have my thanks, Madam Colonel," the woman muttered half-heartedly. Damn, she wanted him to get arrested, all right. "Excuse my...friend's behavior. He really is grateful for your intervention."

"H-hey!" The kid's face became about as red as his hair. "I could've handled that myself!"

"No, you couldn't have," the woman and I said simultaneously.

"Savage…." he murmured.

"Er, anyway, you're welcome. I knew the villagers would handle that roughly-" Nah, I just wanted to do the honors. "-so I had to intervene. But, the villagers' assumptions can't be overlooked. Please, come with me to the mayor's house." I nonchalantly rested both of my hands on both fontech guns, as if to silent threaten the duo.

The woman nodded, fixing the boy with a glare. After a moment, he stood as well, and we headed in the direction of the mayor's house. The people we passed along the way couldn't help but look as we walked by - it was stifling, but I would probably do the same had an officer walked by. Or maybe they were drawn to the boy. He _was_ the one who dared to walk around in those inadequate clothes. At least the woman and I both had _some_ decency. Though they could be staring at the woman as well, she was rather or...how to put this...beautiful and endowed. _Verily_. Hey, it's a simple observation.

It didn't take us very long to reach the cottage located in the center of town. And it took even less time to get the door open. As soon as it was, the woman, who I presumed was the mayor, and Jade peered at us. We'd interrupted their conversation, it looks like. But this was a more important matter. I think. It probably isn't. But I'm involved so they'll have to deal with it being important.

"Colonel!" I said, feeling rather proud of myself. I wasn't going to reveal my suspicions quite yet, so I pushed that to the far recesses of my mind.

"Colonel?" the woman asked, brows furrowed. "I thought you said that you were Colonel Jade Curtiss."

A chill ran down my spine at the look Jade gave me, but I chose to ignore it, allowing a wavering frown form on my face. "S-Sorry, ma'am. But I figured that it would hold more weight if I borrowed the colonel's name - who would've messed with him? Those townspeople would've ripped the both of you into pieces." I shifted my weight awkwardly, throwing a sidelong glance at the boy. "You're a suspect for the thefts. Speak up. Who are you?" Remembering my place, I quickly added. "I-I mean, if that's what you would want, sir…" Jade nodded in agreement; he had his serious face on.

"Luke. Luke fon-" The woman "discreetly" kicked Luke's shin in an attempt to silence him. It worked, as she got the chance to speak when he yelped in pain.

"I'm Tear, Colonel," Tear said, any annoyance present on her features had left and was replaced with cold calculation. "We were heading for Chesedonia, but boarded the wrong coach and ending up here in Engeve."

"I see…." Jade murmured, hands resting in his pockets. "You're with this man?" Pfft. Man. More like a pathetic, whiny child.

"Yes," she confirmed, throwing a glance at Luke. I could've sworn that her eye twitched. "He was suspected of being with the Dark Wings, but that isn't quite the case. We witnessed the battle on the plains where the Dark Wings escaped over the Rotelro Bridge, and destroyed it.

"So you were on that coach from earlier."

"What is this all about, Colonel?" the mayor asked. Clearly, Jade had not filled her in on the situation.

"As Tear said, Rose, bandits known as the Dark Wings fled across the Rotelro Bridge, presumably heading towards Kimlasca." He glanced at Tear and Luke, pushing up his glasses with a nod. "They're not the thieves you seek."

Before anyone could say anything else, the door to the cottage swung open, or perhaps the noise was the Fon Master's staff making contact with the vacant doorframe. Either was, the green haired boy stepped through, speaking almost immediately. "I don't think the thieves _are_ the Dark Wings. In fact, they don't appear to be human."

"Fon Master Ion!" I shouted, half relieved that he was all right and half annoyed that he had run off on his own. _This_ was why he got kidnapped all the time. "T-There you are! Anise and I were worried as fu-as all hell. Worried as all hell!" Gotta remember to filter myself around these kids. "Why did you just run off like that?!"

Ion frowned slightly, as if he was ashamed. He better be! He continued, extending his hand, and showing us what was in his palm. "I'm sorry that I worried you and Anise, Freya. It's just...I wanted to investigate the storehouse. I found this….It's cheagle fur." Jade narrowed his eyes at this, the mayor gasped, and Luke, Tear, and I just didn't care. At least, I didn't. Whoop dee doo. Cheagle fur. "They're probably responsible for all this. I'd like to investi-"

"Unacceptable." Did Jade just interrupt him? Damn, he had guts. Uh, then again, this is _Jade_ we're talking about. "We've a mission of great import. It can't be abandoned because of cheagles. I would understand if the Dark Wings were the thieves, but frankly, they're not, Ion."

"But Jade...There has to be a reason! Things could become problematic-"

"It's just what animals do. Survival of the fittest."

"But they live in a lush forest! There has to be a reason!"

This time, it was Rose who spoke up. "Colonel, if I may interrupt...There was a forest fire in that area a few weeks ago. That was right around the time food started disappearing."

Ion brightened up at that bit, and Jade seemed to deflate. As much as a seemingly emotionless for all but cheerfulness man could. Well, Jade was pissed now. Ion was happy. At least something is right.

"We should go see if they're all right!" With that, Ion turned and walked out the door. It seemed rather out of character for him. From what I perceived him as, anyway.

After another beat, Rose spoke again, saying, "Well, that settles that. Now, the Colonel and I have important business to return to, if you don't mind." Tear and Luke left the room after that, leaving me alone with Rose and the Colonel. Rose looked at me expectantly, waiting for me to leave as well, but I didn't, bowing my head in apology.

"I'm sorry for interrupting, but...I need to tell the colonel something, if you don't mind, ma'am. It's rather private and..." I grumbled the last part, lips pursed by the time I reached the end of the sentence.

The Necromancer eyed the mayor for a moment before sighing. Was he giving in? "Very well…If you'll excuse us, Rose." We stepped out of the hut, and I made sure no one else was in earshot. I was about to continue, but Jade beat me to it. "Hm...I wonder, does it have something to do with that pointless arrest?"

"I-It actually does, Colonel." Did he already figure the entire thing out? And I was just feeling smart… "You see, before I, er, broke up that fight and brought the two of them with me, I overheard Luke say some interesting things." The colonel waved his hand, prompting me to continue. "He said something along the lines of 'The manor pays for this,' and then 'Oh wait, this is Malkuth.' Oh, and then Tear said 'Malkuth _or Kimlasca_ ' and some other things. I think he's a Kimlascan noble. He doesn't seem to be on any official business either."

This seemed to pique the colonel's interest, if it hadn't already - which probably was the case. He nodded sagely, eyes closing for a brief moment. A thought process, perhaps? When they opened again, Jade spoke. "Luke fon Fabre. Son of Duke Fabre, the one responsible for a large amount of death in the Hod War, and nephew to King Ingobert the Sixth. Betrothed to Princess Natalia Luzu Kimlasca-Lanvaldear, his cousin." I couldn't help but make a face. Even _I_ knew that marrying your cousin was...disgusting. I shudder at the thought of it.

"...Wait. _THAT'S_ the heir to the Kimlascan throne?" Jade nodded. "I know they're the enemy, but...Long live King Ingobert, may all those who are ruled by that brat rest in peace."

"It could be advantageous….Had our mission been completely different. This is a mission of peace, keep that in mind. I want no violence."

I sighed, gesturing wildly. "Sure, Jade. Even if I did fire at Kimlascans, you know full well that I'd miss every single one. I prefer fists, thank you."

"Interesting. I would've always thought you had a way with words."

"Where'd that come from?"

"Oh, nothing...Just some sources."

Sources.

What sources.

Jade began to turn and enter the cottage once more.

"Wait...JADE, WHAT SOUR-" _Slam._

Curse that stupid door!

* * *

 **I don't really have any complaints with how this came out as of yet. As I said at the top, if you have any ideas for pairings that _won't_ break any laws or social taboos, then please do share your ideas! I have a few in mind, but feel free to suggest! Now, I'm sure the next chapter will be up sooner than this one was. If you have any thoughts or anything, please leave a review to tell me what you think! Okay, I'll shut up now. Honestly, I could ramble forever. Er, um, eh, bye. (Don't forget to fav, follow and review!)**

 **Edit: As many pointed out, her original age _would_ make things rather...creepy. So, I made an executive decision and bumped her age up. Honestly, I didn't think that through, thank you!**


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